Volcano Erupts on Spain’s Atlantic Ocean Island of La Palma

The Associated Press
By The Associated Press
September 19, 2021Europe
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Volcano Erupts on Spain’s Atlantic Ocean Island of La Palma
A plume of smoke rises following the eruption of a volcano in the Cumbre Vieja national park at El Paso, on the Canary Island of La Palma, on Sept. 19, 2021. (Borja Suarez/Reuters)

MADRID—A volcano on Spain’s Atlantic Ocean island of La Palma erupted Sunday after a weeklong buildup of seismic activity, prompting authorities to speed up evacuations for 1,000 people as lava flows crept toward isolated homes on the mountainside.

The Canary Islands Volcanology Institute reported the eruption on Cumbre Vieja, which last erupted in 1971. Huge red plumes topped with black-and-white smoke shot out along the volcanic ridge that scientists had been closely following the accumulation of molten lava below the surface and days of small earthquakes.

Vocano erupts
Lava and smoke are seen following the eruption of a volcano in the Cumbre Vieja national park at El Paso, on the Canary Island of La Palma, on Sept. 19, 2021. (Borja Suarez/Reuters)

The explosion took place in an area known as Cabeza de Vaca on the western slope of the volcanic ridge as it descends to the coast. Tinges of red could be seen at the bottom of the black jets that shot rocks into the air.

One black lava flow with a burning tip was sliding toward some houses in the village of El Paso. Mayor Sergio Rodríguez said 300 people in immediate danger had been evacuated from their homes and sent to the El Paso soccer field. Roads were closed due to the explosion and authorities urged the curious not to approach the area.

Lava pours out
Lava pours out of a volcano in the Cumbre Vieja national park at El Paso, on the Canary Island of La Palma, on Sept. 19, 2021. (FORTA/Screenshot via Reuters)

La Palma, with a population of 85,000, is one of eight islands in Spain’s Canary Islands archipelago off Africa’s western coast. At their nearest point to Africa, they are 100 kilometers (60 miles) from Morocco.

Itahiza Dominguez, head of seismology of Spain’s National Geology Institute, told local TV station RTVC that although it was too early to tell how long this eruption would last, prior “eruptions on the Canary Islands lasted weeks or even months.”

Mount Cumbre Vieja erupts
Mount Cumbre Vieja erupts spewing a column of smoke and ash as seen from Los Llanos de Aridane on the Canary island of La Palma on Sept. 19, 2021. (Desiree Martin/AFP via Getty Images)

The last eruption on the Canary Islands occurred underwater off the coast of El Hierro island in 2011. That eruption last five months.

After days of what scientists call an “earthquake swarm,” authorities on La Palma had already started to evacuate residents with reduced mobility Sunday shortly before ground broke open. The area near the southern tip of the island where the ridge is located is sparsely populated. Residents of the five nearby villages had already been told to be on alert and ready to leave their homes in case of an eruption.

Resident evacuate
Luis Perez, a resident of El Paso, prepares a suitcase with his clothes and necessary things to leave his house in case of an emergency, on the Canary Island of La Palma, Spain, on Sept. 19, 2021. (Borja Suarez/Reuters)

A 3.8-magnitude quake was recorded before the eruption as vibrations from the seismic activity were felt on the surface.

The Scientific Committee of the Volcano Risk Prevention Plan said stronger earthquakes “are likely to be felt and may cause damage to buildings.” The committee of experts also noted that a stretch of the island’s southwest coast was at risk for landslides and rock falls.